Perpetual Ltd Takes Position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Perpetual Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 49,320 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,462,000. Perpetual Ltd owned about 0.17% of Badger Meter at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ORG Partners LLC bought a new position in Badger Meter in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 1,016.7% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 201 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Badger Meter by 61.3% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 805 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $176,000 after acquiring an additional 306 shares during the last quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Badger Meter in the third quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Badger Meter in the second quarter valued at approximately $207,000. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on BMI shares. Maxim Group increased their price objective on Badger Meter from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Badger Meter from $203.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Badger Meter from $184.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $216.00.

Badger Meter Price Performance

Shares of BMI opened at $219.27 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $218.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $209.99. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 1-year low of $139.50 and a 1-year high of $239.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.45 billion, a PE ratio of 54.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.79.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.62%. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is presently 33.75%.

Badger Meter Profile

Badger Meter, Inc manufactures and markets flow measurement, quality, control, and communication solutions worldwide. It offers mechanical or static water meters, and related radio and software technologies and services to municipal water utilities market. The company also provides flow instrumentation products, including meters, valves, and other sensing instruments to measure and control fluids going through a pipe or pipeline, including water, air, steam, and other liquids and gases to original equipment manufacturers as the primary flow measurement device within a product or system, as well as through manufacturers' representatives.